Jane Ray was born in Chingford, London and is the daughter of Donald Edwin and Barbara May, both teachers and musicians.
She was a scientist as well as an artist and I found that mixture of extremely detailed observation of the natural world and the pure fantasy of ‘dormice in bonnets’ captivating.
[4]Other early influences of Ray's include Lucy Boston, Brian Wildsmith, Arthur Rackham and Jan Pienkowski.
[3] Before becoming an author and illustrator, Ray worked in a variety of jobs including a life model, special needs teacher, telephone cleaner and mural artist.
[6] Ray began her career by designing greetings cards and wrapping paper published by Roger La Borde.
[11] Multi-culturalism is an important aspect of Ray's work, with her stating:"The children I meet are ethnically diverse, and I would frankly, be embarrassed if my "audience" wasn't represented in the books I am making for them.
[12] She produced works for Shannon Ward women's psychiatric intensive care unit at St. Charles Hospital in West London.
[12] In her work for this project Ray primarily depicted natural imagery such as trees as a way to connect outside life with the wards.